Itziar Diez-Canedo

This part of my conversation with Joao Barbosa, co-founder at the world’s leading wellness platform Gympass (now Wellhub) valued at $2.4 is a testament to the fact that nothing big actually started big 👇 It took Gympass 5 pivots and 2 near death experiences to find the business model that works and is scalable across the globe What I found really interesting is the framework that the team had around pivots - the tripod approach towards creating value. This approach could benefit many founders especially in marketplace kinda businesses Head over to our channels on Spotify, Apple and YouTube to watch / listen to the full conversation link in comment 🔗 The J Curve #thejcurvepodcast #podcastrecommendation #gympass #pivot #entrepreneurship #founder #venturecapital

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At the recent Founders N' Funders event, I got to see our founder Eduardo Henriques give a quick 30-second pitch for Ponder.ly - a really exciting glimpse into what we're building. For those interested in seeing the full pitch and learning more about our AI-powered consumer intelligence platform, Eduardo Henriques will be presenting at the upcoming Pitch Deck Review Session on May 20th. This is a great opportunity to observe his pitch to a panel of startup experts who will provide valuable feedback. As a co-founder, I'm really passionate about the problem we're solving - enabling brands to ethically collect customer data and generate deep insights, while empowering consumers to control and benefit from sharing their information. Our approach using interactive branded data communities, gamification, and AI is truly innovative. I'd encourage anyone interested in disruptive marketing/research technologies to sign up and check out Eduardo's pitch. It will give you a window into how Ponder.ly is pioneering the future of transparent data exchange between brands and customers. Looking forward to getting more exposure and feedback as we continue growing Ponder.ly into a game-changing platform! Thanks to Jeff Erickson with Founders N' Funders because without his support and unconditional belief in startups like ours, we wouldn't have opportunities like this. Supportive ecosystems play a vital role in nurturing entrepreneurship and innovation. Registration link: https://lnkd.in/guFgMib4 Tanner S. Zyanya Bejarano David Reyes Jose Octavio Carrillo

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‌I recently returned from spending a week in São Paulo, where I had the pleasure of visiting friends and loved ones. In addition to reconnecting, I engaged in productive discussions with founders, fellow venture capitalists, and other asset allocators. ✈ 👨‍💻 👊 The trip was filled with great meetings, offering valuable insights and market perspectives on early-stage venture capital and the fintech ecosystem in Brazil. 🎯 🌎 💡 #VCs #earlystage #investments #networking

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🚀 Exciting News Alert! 🚀 Join SFOG for an exclusive webinar on June 4th at 2:00 PM featuring Dux Capital! Dive into the world of venture capital with a focus on Latinx founders and emerging startups. Don't miss this opportunity to learn from industry leaders! Register Now: https://lnkd.in/gvNjx9i5 #LatinxEntrepreneurs #VentureCapital #Webinar

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For Full episode w/Justis Mendez from OneSixOne Ventures - https://lnkd.in/eYixPjf5 Networking or building skills? The days of 'or' are over. It's all about networking, building projects, and establishing an online presence. No more 'if', it's about doing it all at once. Build your personal brand, enhance your communication skills, learn new abilities, and collaborate with peers. #NetworkingSkills #BuildingProjects #OnlinePresence #PersonalBrand #CommunicationSkills #ContinuousLearning #Collaboration

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I had the pleasure of joining Marisa “Ritzy” Estrada Rivera on “The Get Down,” a butterscotch media podcast. 🎙️ We discussed my journey from finance to entrepreneurship and eventually to Web3, and how my current role as CFO at Hedera allows me to pursue my passion for technology and financial inclusion. 🔗 Listen to the full episode here: https://lnkd.in/g4fKP6Da Key topics we covered: - The critical need for finance professionals to understand blockchain - The significance of stablecoins in the modern economy and about Hedera's stablecoin studio - Insights from my career path and its impact on my views on the future of finance Congratulations to Cleve Mesidor for creating such an important platform and for this opportunity. I hope you find the conversation insightful. #Finance #Entrepreneurship #Web3 #Blockchain #Stablecoins #Hedera #TheGetDown #Podcast -

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Hello Maera! Our new focus in Maera is helping women entrepreneurs and allies create, run and grow their businesses. We've done it for thousands of entrepreneurs up to date, and now we're pushing it even further to help this massively underserved growing market. In Latin, Maera means a marvelous woman. In Greek Mythology, it means the sparkler, which is right on point with our mission. I've come to learn that creating a company for an entrepreneur is not just some legal paperwork, it's basically creating the structure so they can make their dreams a reality. They trust us with this gigantic decision of going out there and making their magic, reason why this is also personal for us. As entrepreneurs, we want other entrepreneurs to thrive to. They have the fire inside of them ready to be ignited, and we're just that initial spark to get things rolling for them. The moment you stop seeing your customers as just money and take the time to really understand their dreams, desires and fears, is the moment when your business can really take off because you start to really develop solutions tailored for their needs.

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>>> How can SaaS companies future-proof their fundraising <<< I had the pleasure to speak with Adina Davis from BoxGroup, Nancy Chou from Asymmetric, Camila Key Saruhashi from Construct Capital and Philip Edmondson-Jones from Oxx during our panel on fundraising last Tuesday. A ton of great insights from the panelists after having been many years in the SaaS industry as investors, operators and advisors! We’ll be sharing some insights in the coming days, starting with: 🔷 Current Industry Trends 🔷 🔹In the US, SaaS companies are finally coming out of a two-year dip in funding and growth. Startups in the top quartile are still getting high valuations, but for growing companies, especially companies looking to secure series B funding, the bar is higher. Both equity and debt funding avenues look for stand-out efficiency, excellent product-market fit, and scalability. 🔹In Europe, upcoming funding rounds indicate a slightly more positive fundraising environment for growing SaaS companies. 🌏 Globally, many company metrics have taken a hit due to the macroeconomic environment, which can make it more difficult to meet the VC standards required to secure funding. 🔹That said, some of today’s most exciting and innovative startups received game-changing funding over the last couple years, and with more funding options entering the mainstream, companies have an opportunity to complement their capital stack through alternative means. #growthcapital #saasgrowth #venturecapital

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Today marks a significant milestone as we launch Zendesk Ventures, a project I've been passionately working on since joining Zendesk almost three years ago. Over this period, we've made remarkable investments in companies like Zuper, Observe.AI, and most recently, PolyAI and unitQ. While there's much more to share about these investments in future posts, I want to focus on appreciation today. This launch wouldn't have been possible without the collective efforts of numerous individuals and teams. Preparing for a successful launch truly takes a village, and I'm deeply grateful for everyone's contributions. A heartfelt thank you to: The Marketing Team – for their exceptional work in communications and planning the London showcase event. Andrea Lencina Garcia, Catherine Hardy, Courtney Blake, Danielle Wilson, Jenna Ochoa, Laura Murray, Lauren J., Sophie Ambridge, Kayla Schmidt The Tech Alliances Team – for preparing detailed information on each company, educating our employees, and providing specialized attention to our investments. Tim Marsden, Megan Francis, Michelle Torres, Mike Monteiro, Micah D. The Creative Team – for their brilliant work building an impressive new website, zendeskventures.com., and other creative assets. Jordyn Fields, Kristina Alford, Raven Wright, Betsy (Filson) Field, Adam Chung The Startups Team—for collaborating on events and for introducing me to their network of VCs and startups. Kristen Durham, Jeremy Ambrose The Corp Dev Team – for their unwavering support in bringing this vision to life. Ben Barclay, Henry Hedinger, Dana (Robinson) Sofer, Mandy Xiao A special thanks to Ben and Pascal Pettinicchio for their continuous support and for driving this venture forward. Thank you all immensely. Apologies if I missed anyone – please know that I deeply appreciate every single contribution to this endeavor. #Appreciation #ZendeskVentures #TeamWork #Gratitude

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For Full episode w/Justis Mendez from OneSixOne Ventures - https://lnkd.in/eYixPjf5 Founder market fit is key when evaluating startups. It's not just about the idea, but also the distance traveled and the grit shown by the founder. Starting a business is tough, and it takes a special kind of determination. Interestingly, our accelerator experience taught us that wealth doesn't always equate to success. The best fights come from those who truly believe in their vision. #FounderMarketFit #Grit #StartupJourney

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Talent is everywhere, but opportunity is not. Techstars is on a mission to change that. Join this exciting conversation with Shirley Romig, Chief Accelerator Investment Officer at Techstars. We're diving into all things Techstars 2.0, investing in amazing, unstoppable founders, and how running marathons is just like building startups. Tune in for some good time and inspiration on the latest EU-Startups Podcast. Link to full episode in the comments. 👇 #startup #founders #venturecapital

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I had a great chat with Ola Sars, founder of Spotify Business and Co-Founder of Beats Music, which was acquired by Apple for $3.2B. This was another awesome convo with a great special guest alongside my co-host & brother Alejandro Garcia-Amaya on our Unicorn Web Series (sponsored by ILUMA: The AI Chief of Staff for CEOs - Bad news delivered directly to you, everyday). One of my favorite stories that Ola shared was his specific experience on the fact that, as a founder, it doesn’t matter what YOU perceive to be a big problem, but what your customer perceives to be a painful problem that needs to be solved. Ola and Spotify Business set out to solve the problem that retail businesses around the world were playing music through their personal Spotify account (which is illegal in the US and Europe). However, Ola found out that retail business owners were not bothered by the legal issue at all. Instead what they liked about Ola’s product was the ability to control the music across all their stores. Ola’s product solved a big headache for them - preventing employees from playing their own taste in music at their stores, which was damaging to their business brands. You can watch the full conversation here https://lnkd.in/g6rtFrwm  or tune in to the podcast https://lnkd.in/gNcyNaEd. #MusicTech #Leadership #ILUMA #Founders #CEOInsights #CEO #startups

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One thing we make sure to ask our CEOs on the Fintech Thought Leaders podcast is to share one piece of advice they'd give to someone thinking about starting their first company. For Miguel Fernandez Larrea, co-founder and CEO of Capchase, he reinforced the importance of talking to customers. If you're looking for great advice from successful entrepreneurs who have been in your shoes, our podcast is for you. Hear more advice from Miguel, here: https://lnkd.in/e9Cd-mj5

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It was an absolute pleasure to sit down with Joao Barbosa, co-founder at the world's leading corporate wellness platform Gympass(now rebranded to Wellhub) for the most recent episode of The J Curve. Five big ideas from our convo 👇💡 1️⃣ Startup pivot is not an event, it’s a process Base your decision on data, customer feedback and other validated learnings. Establish clear KPIs that will guide decision-making and define what should success look like. Be prepared to test and iterate and test again. Flexibility, adaptability and sensitivity to feedback is key 2️⃣ Building a MOAT, or competitive advantage is essential for a startup to compete and sustain growth In Wellhub case the moat is network effect. It’s difficult and expensive to build (CAC was huge) but at scale it represents a huge barrier to exit for corporate clients 3️⃣ Put a lot of thought into pricing model, especially if you operate in a B2B segment Early-stage founders frequently under-price their offering. Once you land 1-2-year enterprise contracts, changing the price will be problematic 4️⃣ International expansion has to be carefully planned and executed post-product market fit Ideally once you have already significantly penetrated your domestic market and gained a clear understanding of how / why every dollar you spend internationally will deliver you more money than if you were to spend it domestically 5️⃣ Standardized processes are at the core of building teams at scale When you hire 100 people a month it’s not about keeping the bar high but about creating a clear set of rules to evaluate the performance and hire and fire fast You can listen to my full conversation with Joao by searching The J Curve Podcast on Youtube, Spotify and Apple Podcast For deeper insights into this conversation + some of my favorite listens and reads of this week check out our newsletter link in comment 🔗

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Startup Community Leaders & Facilitators; Tune in later today to listen to John Hill's power of the network talk... so many actionable tips to help you leverage your own network.

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Big news for Startups: Introducing Vouch x Carta 🚀 Vouch and Carta are teaming up to revolutionize insurance for Carta clients. This partnership means Carta users will soon benefit from: 🎯 Faster insurance applications 💸 Exclusive discounts 💡 Real-time risk monitoring As Reed McBride, Carta’s VP of Strategic Partnerships and Ecosystem, said “Carta chose to partner with Vouch because we share the same goal: ensuring that great startups don’t fail for the wrong reasons.” You can learn more about our partnership by reading the Carta announcement in the comments. #Insurance #Insurtech #Innovation #VouchAndCarta

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Truth or Myth: The US Latino Community is Underserved in Financial Services? ------> Let's debunk a common misconception. While it's often said that the US Latino community is underserved, the reality paints a different picture. In 2023, Latinos accounted for $66.5 billion (21.5%) of the $309.5 billion spent on credit services. This spending over-indexes compared to their overall share of the U.S. population (18.4%). 📊 Most financial services and banking leaders understand that properly serving the US Latino market is imperative for growth. As one of the fastest-growing segments of the U.S. population, the Latino community's financial influence cannot be ignored. Yet, the suite of financial products and the level of service they receive are often sub-optimal. For instance, Latinos are more likely to pay higher interest rates on credit products than non-Latinos. 😕 The potential for positive change is immense. By building AI-powered financial services teams in the U.S and Mexico, we can bridge this gap and provide top-tier services tailored to the unique needs of the Latino community. I invite you to join the conversation. Do you believe the US Latino community is underserved in financial services? Share your thoughts and questions below! 💬👇 #FinancialServices #LatinoMarket #CreditServices #AIPoweredTeams #DiversityInFinance

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We’re bringing Reforge’s expertise into your favorite tools... 🤯 Reforge can now coach you as you write your most important strategic documents like PRDs, roadmaps, GTM plans, and more; all without leaving Google Docs, Confluence, Notion, or Coda.    It’s as if you’re working alongside experts like Elena Verna, Adam Fishman, Brian Balfour, or Andrew Chen, all lending their expertise to make your work stronger.   Introducing Reforge for Chrome, a browser extension for Chrome, Opera, Edge, or Brave, available today for members. Here's what some of our earliest users are saying: 1️⃣ "I love having Reforge in Notion. It helps suggest and draft improvements grounded in industry knowledge." - Principal PM at Persefoni 2️⃣ "Reforge provides valuable feedback, challenging your briefs like your peers or boss would. Plus, it gives you a great head start on drafting with a more authentic tone." - Senior PM at MadKudu Learn more and download via the link in the comments 👇

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Our latest podcast episode just dropped! Our guest, Ignacio Carcavallo, Ventures Coach, Advisor, and Mentor, shared his coaching journey with us on this week's Founder's Journey Podcast's episode! Take a quick look at what Ignacio shares with us; -> You need a mentor. He explains that, in the beginning, as a startup founder, it's essential to have someone to talk to. Keep in mind that no matter how intelligent or skilled at executing you are, many of your decisions lack experience. -> Of course, you can't do it all yourself Ignacio describes how if you want to create a sustainable company that thrives over time, you need to cooperate. Why face everything solo? Build a team. -> You go to the doctor! You break a bone in half; you have a fracture. Would you say, "Today I'm going to walk slowly, and then I'm going to put on a bandage"? No! You go to the doctor! Ignacio used this example to discuss how he resolved his online branding crisis. How? Easy. He found a professional mentor, the best in personal branding, and started learning from him. -> Mitigating anxiety As a founder, talking to someone who has had this experience before, coaches, or consultants, will reduce your stress and anxiety. It is important to feel supported and to feel like you have a safety net. -> Back in time Ignacio also reminded us about his journey's challenges to success. "If I could only coach myself 10 or 15 years ago, my life would have been so much different!" - he reminisces. Keep listening to Ignacio's points in this week's editions of the Founder's Journey Podcast's 👋 Listen to the full episode today and Subscribe to never miss an episode. ♻️ Repost this to inspire your network 👉 Join the Founder's Collective Newsletter https://bit.ly/49NZKei

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